Key to Sucess in College

What is the key to success in college? How can a student organize and complete all the work demands? A disciplined approach can make all the difference in college success and absolute failure. Using simple methods and basic common sense you can greatly improve your success and reduce the stress of a college level work load.

Quiet and organized work space

Modern college students face more distractions than ever before. We are pulled away from school work by a hundred different preferred activities, Facebook, Youtube, Reddit,Digg,Video games,Netflix and cable tv are all accessible 24/7 and eat up hours of our time. After a few boring pages of psychology a few quick minutes on Reddit is tempting, but three hours later you don’t know what happened. How do we overcome the long list of distractions and our general loathing for school work?

A quiet and comfortable workspace is absolutely necessary. Television, music, roommates and other surroundings will make working much more difficult. A quiet space will make work much faster, easier and less stressful. Eliminating distractions, especially for those who are easily drawn away from work (procrastinators!) will make a significant difference. Go to the Library with all necessary supplies, but leave the laptop at home. Everyone hates using paper and pencils but it will make those quick breaks that last hours no longer an option.

Detailed Schedule

Do you constantly go to class unprepared? Forget that exam was today? Didn’t do the reading/homework again? Start a detailed schedule. Go to the store and buy a 1$ notebook to write down everything homework related. Include the date (so you won’t get confused), what the homework is, make sure to describe it clearly, and mark down due dates. Along with a notebook you also will need a basic calendar (1$ at any store). Transfer dates onto the calendar and put it above your bed. Every day you can remind yourself what is due and when, now nothing will ever suddenly come up. Remember the only way a schedule is successful is if you write down the necessary information and learn to use it on a regular basis. A blank notebook won’t help you remember anything.

Class Participation

A class of 300 students makes it tempting to sit on your computer and play games the whole semester. Who cares, it’s just American History for the 10th time right? Wrong. Every class in college matters. The three most important words in College are Grade Point Average. The economic crisis in recent years had made competition tough. Eventually you will need to pursue education greater than an Associates or Bachelor’s degree. Going to graduate school hinges on your GPA. Do not waste easy A’s playing on your laptop or Ipad. You will need easy classes to make up for the tough classes.

Homework and Learning

Classwork and Homework used to be worth something. High school teachers collected homework and gave you credit for doing it. Many college professors assign homework, but never collect it and it counts for nothing. Or does it? College homework has the same purpose as homework in high school, it is meant to gauge your understanding of the material, preview material before class discussion and help you to understand what you need to work on.

Doing the assigned homework will ultimately help you to retain more of the information. You can go to class prepared with the knowledge needed to actively participate and absorb information. Suddenly during exams you start to recognize recycled questions from the homework, and find that you are familiar with all the material instead of finding a few questions you know nothing about.

Conclusion

We pay thousands of dollars a year to attend a school of higher learning. We spend hundreds of dollars on books, to live on campus and to be provided with an academic environment. Yet, almost everyone drags their feet, they don’t want to work. A college degree used to be all that was necessary to get a decent job. Now the world is changing. Competition is springing up from all over the world; Jobs are becoming scarce and competitive. You need to come prepared with all the knowledge possible, a high GPA and the ability and skills to attend graduate school. Focus on learning and the rest will be easy.